Fayek said that the EDA has granted a license to an Egyptian factory that will undertake the production of the experimental sample of the Egyptian vaccine to be used in clinical trials CAIRO: The Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA) has approved the manufacture of the first doses of an Egyptian coronavirus vaccine, Covi Vax, according to local media. The Egyptian channel DMC show “Egypt Can” showed the first pictures of the Covi Vax packages amid plans to begin clinical trials on the vaccine. “Egypt is moving at a steady pace and is participating in producing a coronavirus vaccine,” the show’s host, Ahmed Fayek, said. “The Egyptian Drug Authority granted a factory a license to produce the first experimental samples (of the vaccine),” he added. Fayek said that Egypt will be the first country in the Middle East to manufacture a coronavirus vaccine with solely Egyptian efforts. “The study and research of the Egyptian coronavirus vaccine have been published in a specialized international scientific journal, as it has proven its effectiveness in laboratory experiments and experiments on animals,” he added. Fayek said that the EDA had given approval to produce the first experimental batch. After obtaining approval for clinical trials, the vaccine will pass through three stages. The first will include a small number of people to ensure the safety of the vaccine on humans. The second will include 100 to 500 volunteers, while the third will be tested on up to 50,000 volunteers from different countries in order to achieve genetic diversity. FASTFACT The study and research of the Egyptian coronavirus vaccine have been published in a specialized international scientific journal, as it has proven its effectiveness in laboratory experiments and experiments on animals. He said the Egyptian vaccine was produced by the National Research Center in Egypt, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. “The National Research Center produced many vaccines against the bird flu,” he said. Fayek said that the EDA has granted a license to an Egyptian factory that will undertake the production of the experimental sample of the Egyptian vaccine to be used in clinical trials. “The National Research Center has worked on the virus strain present in Egypt, and has conducted laboratory experiments on four types of animals and is now awaiting the permission to test the vaccine clinically,” he said. “All of this has been published in scientific research in one of the major medical periodicals around the world, judged by senior international professors and scientists, who also reviewed the Egyptian COVID-19 vaccine and said it produces antibodies.”